Pilot + Feasibility

Please note: We are no longer accepting applications for the 2013 MNORC Pilot /Feasibility (P/F) Grant Program. Please check back later this year for information on the 2014 Grant Program.

Purpose

The purpose of the MNORC Pilot /Feasibility (P/F) Grant Program is to promote research on the biological and behavioral determinants of obesity, and to develop interventions to reduce obesity and its disease sequelae using basic, clinical, or population approaches. The P/F program's aim is to enable both new and established University of Michigan investigators to generate sufficient preliminary information for a successful application for major research funding from NIH or other national granting agencies.

Grant proposals may be in areas of basic biomedical research or in clinical, epidemiological, or translational research, e.g. interventions in clinical or population-based setting. Animal or human models may be considered. Grant proposals involving cross-disciplinary expertise, Faculty from different UM schools, and that utilize the core laboratories of the MNORC are especially encouraged.

The MNORC Pilot /Feasibility (P/F) Grant Program aims to foster research addressing key questions in the areas of:

• Pathogenesis, diagnosis, prevention, or control of obesity, its complications or related endocrine or metabolic disorders (for example: counter-regulatory proteins, obesity, metabolic syndrome), neuro-peptides which may control eating behavior, adipose tissue biology, gut flora influence on nutrient absorption and cellular functions related to energy utilization.
• Translational research projects are encouraged and should focus on the translation of research advances into clinical practice or population-based interventions related to obesity, and include the identification of barriers to widespread adoption of new science and the testing of interventions to overcome these barriers.

Eligibility

Individuals who have full-time instructional or research faculty positions at the University of Michigan are eligible to apply as Principal Investigators of P/F proposals. Eligible applicants are: a) new investigators beginning careers in research on nutrition and obesity; b) established investigators in areas of biomedical research who wish to focus their expertise on nutrition, obesity and related areas; or c) established nutritional sciences or obesity investigators who wish to take an entirely new direction from their usual work. This new direction cannot be an extension or outgrowth of research currently being undertaken by the applicant.

Successful applicants who receive funding will be required to acknowledge the MNORC funding (P30 DK089503) on all resultant publications, as well as reporting periodically on progress and attending the MNORC Annual Symposium to present the results of the funded project.

Application

Proposals should request one year of support in direct costs, with requested funding up to $50,000. P/F funds may not be applied to salary support for the Principal Investigator or other faculty, travel expenses (except as related to project research) or purchase of equipment (i.e., durable items costing over $5,000).

Submit the names and contact information for two potential external reviewers of your proposal that have expertise in relevant areas addressed by your research and for which you have no conflict of interest. Each proposal will receive peer review by experts and internal review by the P/F Advisory Committee of the MNORC. It is anticipated that P/F projects that receive a favorable review will be notified by June 15, 2013 and funded on July 1, 2013.

Responsibility of Investigators Funded by the NORC

Pilot and Feasibility Grant Awardees are required to submit a final progress report to the NORC at the end of the grant year.

Competitive Renewals

Pilot and Feasibility Grant Awardees may apply for a second year of funding, consecutive to their initial award period. Funding for competitive renewals will be considered for Awardees who have demonstrated exceptional progress throughout their first year of funding and who require additional time and funds to establish the promise or feasibility of the work. Competitive renewal applications are reviewed by the same mechanism described above for primary applications. Renewals may or may not be peer-reviewed by the same experts that conducted the review on the original, successful application.

For More Information, Please Contact:

Ormond MacDougald, Director of Pilot and Feasibility Program, via email: macdouga@umich.edu

Three awards were made in the 2012 grant cycle (July 1, 2012 - June 30, 2013):

Lei Yin, Ph.D., Assistant Professor (Dept of Molecular and Integrative Physiology)
"Nutrient-dependent Regulation of Molecular Clock"
$50,000

Shanti Eswaran, MD, Clinical Lecturer (Department of Medicine - Division of Gastroenterology)
"Low FODMAP diet vs. usual care for patients with irritable bowel syndrom with diarrhea (IBS-D): a randomized, controlled trial and gastroinestinal microbiome analysis"
$50,000

David P. Olson, MD Ph.D, Assistant Professor (Pediatrics and Communicable Disease)
"The Role of Vasopressin Neurons in Energy Balance"
$50,000

Click here to view previous awards.